True Courage
by ThickerThanLove
Summary: In the aftermath of the Great Gummies returning, opportunities open up left and right, including giving the Glen cubs the chance to pick their own path. Sunni Gummi ends up choosing a way much different than she ever imagined and it will take all the courage she has to take the first step. This is currently meant as a one-shot, I may change that later.


True Courage

_Gummi Bears Characters are copyrighted to Disney. Used without permission strictly for entertainment purposes. Any characters not copyrighted to Disney (i.e. Ryo, Lundi) and story plot copyrighted to ThickerThanLove_

She had been planning this for a while. Gum knew she had been considering it when they had still been living in Ursalia. She had to admit that when their cousins had returned, after their home in the Glen had been restored, she had wondered if the desire would disappear, if it had only become so intense out of necessity but no, the opposite had happened.

She supposed she had KNOWN it would happen though. For all the cultural differences between the Glens and the Barbics, Sunni had to admit that their way of life always fascinated her. The more she learned about it, the more intrigued she had become.

Granted, she was still fascinated with the royalty life (and in ways, she always would be) but the more she learned from Calla, the more she observed, and honestly, the more she matured, the less "romantic" it became. Sure, it was a neat idea to have servants, beautiful clothes and the like, but Sunni was learning that beauty came in all kinds of different forms.

Case in point, after the Second Gummi-Human War, Buddi had finally gotten a chance to give her his present. It had been a full on Barbic-style tunic: green, made out of animal hide, almost to her knees with slits up to the sides to make moving easier. There had been stitches of birds in the sleeves. Judging by Buddi's blushing face, he had done it himself. The fact that he apologized over and over for the "mediocre" stitching sealed that knowledge to her.

It took some time to adjust to the different texture, given that she was used to clothing made from cotton or flak. Getting used to hide and leather took some doing but she found that she liked it. This outfit in particular she liked a lot because Buddi incorporated her favorite colors and added the stiches of the birds, which were quite elaborate. It must have taken forever! As odd as it might have sounded, it was beautiful. She never would have thought she would describe anything but a fancy ballroom gown as beautiful but when she took into account the love he must have poured into it—the dye for the hide, the making of the hide, the stitching…

She had been rightly stunned and had told him such. Buddi, in turn, had been stunned that she would have expected anything smaller. His humility about the amount of work it had taken just reminded her again of those little traits about him that she loved so much. He never drew a lot of attention to himself, despite being the only child of his clan.

When they had first met, one of Sunni's first questions had been where his siblings were. She had just assumed that he had siblings based on how he acted. It had surprised her, immensely, when he told her that he was the only cub. He had provided her with many other surprises over the years though: sometimes being so socvially awkward when meeting others that he seemed younger than Cubbi and yet at others, his eyes taking on this hardened gaze that no threat could crumble. It was a fascinating thing to witness. Yet, the more she learned about him, the more fascinating he became and the more she longed to stay by his side.

Still, his gift to her on her thirteenth birthday really stuck. She wore it with pride.

Apparently, 13 was a big deal to Barbics just as much as it was to Glens. While her home clan viewed it as her "growing into her fur" the barbics viewed it similarly, as Buddi told her that thirteen was the magic age when you underwent your Test of Bearhood, the first of two steps that made you an adult in his clan's eyes. Hence, the elaborate effort he had put into her gift.

She had NOT missed that his eyes fell as bit as he recalled she had not been there for his.

Truth be told, if she had known how important it had been, she would have been there for every step of it. She had dismissed it as she tended to dismiss a lot of gummi traditions, not understanding the meaning behind it. If she looked over some of her past actions grearding traditions, she winced. She truly had come across as an ungrateful brat at times though that had never been her intention. It was just…so many of their traditions were just _done_. There was a story sometimes with them but she could never make the connection between the history and the tradition, thus the dismissal of it.

Barbic traditions were passed by word of mouth as was Barbic history. Gruffi so often scoffed at it and Sunni could certainly see why, as things were often so messed up or lost over time but Gruffi never saw how the Barbics remembered their stories. It was every day. Every night before they retired to bed, they shared their old stories, but from different views! One night, they might tell of the rising of Kuriani to be a leader but from Kuriani's descendent one night and from the point of view of the descendant of her second in command the next. It really was fascinating. Sunni could see how it worked for the Barbics.

Granted, there was a lot about GENERAL gummi history they didn't know (like they knew of Ursalia, Gummadoon and the Glen but not many other clans) but the bits they did know of were close to their hearts! Every time she asked Buddi about the reasoning behind a tradition, not only did he know but he knew in detail! Honestly, it made her a bit embarrassed about her own lack of knowledge on the Glen traditions.

When she asked about the Test of Bearhood, he had told her an elaborate tale of their clan founder, Kuriani, undergoing a perilous journey when she was only thirteen years of age that allowed her spare her family certain death and rescue them from an ambush. When she returned, she was deemed ready to begin the training that would allow her to become Captain one day, before the Barbic clan even split from the other gummi clans! According to Buddi, the day after his test, he got to pick his first weapon to begin training in, the first of three he had to perfect before his adulthood test.

When she asked Buddi about becoming an adult, he told her about having to master a long range, middle range and short range because you never knew what you might need. He told her about besting or equaling your mentor so that your clan knew that not only had you learned your lessons well but that you could utilize them to defend yourself and defend your clan. He told her about representing your clan and pride and that that show of honor was given to you by your family in an elaborate show weapon that could be used to tell the stories of your childhood and your closest clan members to your children…

Well, suffice to say, she was stunned by the amount of knowledge and thought that was contained in their traditions.

So, when she received his gift, she had meant it when she said it was beautiful. Lately, she wore it more than her usual outfit. She had not missed Gruffi's look that told her everything about what HE thought about that. Though, while she respected him, his opinion...heck, a lot of people's opinions didn't seem to matter much anymore.

It still surprised her that she had possessed the courage to tell him her intentions of going to the Barbics this time. It had been hard…so hard. She never thought Gruffi would cry but…

She had changed a lot since they had first met the warrior gummi clan, though it had only been a few years. She had just turned fourteen. But so much had happened since then…their cousins returning from over the sea, the repopulation of the Glen, of South Gumpton, of Ursalia, the resurrection of Barbic Woods, the marriage of Cavin and Calla and their rising to the rank of King and Queen, the alliance between Gummi and Human kind…

It was enough to make her head swirl!

Though, lately, she had been with the Barbics more than with the Glen, the Gummadoonians or anybody else for that matter, even Calla. She had been helping them to get Barbic Woods back to its original state but she had to admit, learning about them in the process had taken up much of her time. She had learned how to shoot and cook and all kinds of things. She felt a sense of empowerment that was an alien but welcomed feeling to her.

Truthfully though, she had been feeling conflicted.

She loved her home clan, she always had. True, they did not always see eye to eye, on a lot of things, but she was loyal to them and grateful for their guidance. Yet, when their cousins returned, as much as she was glad to meet them, she found herself seeking out the Barbics more and more. Maybe it was a result of having had such a small clan for so long, maybe it was because lots of the others were striking out in their own paths (Cubbi left to train in Gummadoon to be a knight and Tummi finally gave in to the call of sea) but something told her it was something else.

She was beginning to admire the Barbics' passion more. She began to see through their eyes easier. She found herself pondering more and more "Why DON'T we fight back?" Oh, she didn't think of her clan as cowards..far from it! However, she could not deny that the idea of being on the defensive for the rest of her life, of having cubs and living the life of a housewife was…not appealing.

Oh, not the cub part. She DID want cubs. But, as much as Grammi loved being the stay-at-home caregiver, she didn't see that in her future. She didn't look down on Grammi or her cousins that desired that though. She just…well, she wanted something else. Not a magician, not anything like that. Didn't really see herself as a magician or a historian. She didn't have the patience for it.

She really didn't know WHAT. She did like taking care of people but she wanted to be deeply involved, she wanted to have a HAND in turning the lives for the better, in keeping her clan safe. She found that the more she learned about things, the more she wanted to learn. There was so much she had not had a chance to explore. She really couldn't say what it was that was missing but she COULD say that it was not found in the Glen. Or in Gummadoon though she did like visiting there on occasion.

She found herself most at peace here, among the Barbics, among the trees and with her Buddi. Hence, she had taken the first step when she left the Glen this time. She had left all her things behind and come to them barefoot in the tunic Buddi had given her. Grammi had sobbed when she had left but with a smile as had Zummi.

Gruffi…well, she only hoped that in time, he would understand. Something told her that he would but still, it was always hard to see disappointment in his eyes. She knew that he hoped she would stay in the Glen, have children with so many of their cousins returned, and become a juice maker. She knew that. He had a lot of dreams for her but she was just not embracing any of them.

Heck, Gruffi had even introduced her to some of the gummi royalty a little bit ago. Not a prince per say but one of the sons of some of the ruling classes. Sunni supposed a human term would have been a Duke or some such. He had been a nice boy, true enough. She still considered him a friend but he had not won her heart. She would have thought it would have bothered her that she turned down the chance to be royalty but the choice had been remarkably easy.

When Gruffi, rightly stunned, as was the rest of her home clan, had asked what had gone awry, she had been truthful and told him nothing but that they simply were not a good match. When Gruffi had argued with her that "no one" they introduced her to was a good match, she had surprised all when she answered

"'Course not. They aren't Buddi."

Hence, here she was, rehearsing to herself outside the main eating hut in Barbic Woods as the others started to file in around her. Her stomach was in knots. The dinner smelled wonderful as it always did but tonight it made her queasy. She could have easily ended the discomfort by telling herself she didn't HAVE to do this but she would be lying to herself. She had to; she knew that now more than ever.

One of the Barbics touched her on the shoulder, "Better head in if you wanna eat, girl. You've learned THAT hanging around us, right?"

Grinning, she gave a nod. "I'm comin' Lundi." She assured the archer, pulling from her spot and following him inside. He had taken to her rather quickly, given the Barbics' initial opinion of Glens (especially given her old usual thought towards fancy dresses, parties and the like) had not won her many allies. Most of them tolerated her now and she had found that most of them, even Ursa, seemed to have taken to liking her company, her questions, her inquiries.

One thing she learned very quickly, however was that even if you were a guest—if you did not work, you missed meals. If you were late, you missed meals. She didn't think she had ever been so punctual in her life!

Still, as she took her seat and the meal began in its usual fashion, her stomach continued its rapid spin of nerves until she thought for certain that she would burst! Barbic meals typically were pretty quiet affairs, though some conversation was deemed appropriate, until the majority of the eating was finished. Then, that was when the conversations really took off. Sunni didn't imagine ever not wanting a meal to end as much as she wanted it to be done and over with already!

As she glanced around though, she noted that conversations were starting to pick up. If she didn't make her move now, she would lose her chance, not to mention her nerve. She locked her eyes on Buddi, sitting a few chairs over. He blinked at her, a little surprised. Of course, she had not told him what she planned but taking a glance at him, she felt her resolve stiffen enough to make her stand and address the room,

"Ursa, could I speak to all for a moment?"

Speaking Barbic was still hard for her, as it flowed off her lips in a rather choppy manner. You could certainly tell she was not a native speaker. She would have liked to use a bit more of a flowery language, as she had heard Buddi do on several occasions but she did not have the vocabulary nor the grammar knowledge yet to do that. So, she stuck to what she knew: straight forward phrases. It was appropriate, she supposed.

Rightly surprised, the room went dead quiet and the Barbic leader raised a brow at the Glen girl then looked to her son. Buddi shook his head and shrugged. He was as stunned as the others. Ursa directed her attention back to the Glen girl and answered her, in Barbic. If the girl deemed herself able to start a conversation in barbic, she best be ready to finish it!

Though, Ursa _did_ speak slower than she usually did and Sunni was eternally grateful for it.

"You have our attention, Sunni."

The girl moved from her chair and walked to stand in front of Ursa directly, which also, indirectly put her in front of ALL the barbics. Her knees felt like jelly but she forced them to move until she stood in front of the Barbic leader and then forced them to be still. Licking her lips once to try and wet them, she answered,

"I have a...request…to make of you." She hoped she had spoken the proper word for request. According to Buddi, request and command were very similar. The last thing she wanted was to come across as threatening.

Ursa raised a brow, surprised but also impressed by how the girl had mastered their language. A month ago, she would have used the wrong word. "Must be a pretty important one for you to wait until we are all present."

Important? More like the most important thing she was ever going to do in her entire life! "It is…a vital request for me. One that I have thought about a lot."

Ursa gave a nod to her, asking without words for her to continue.

"I…am asking you….to allow me to undergo an Earning of the Fur."

The room exploded, with Ryo being the first to speak, though Sunni did not doubt he would. He was the most verbal about his disapproval of her and Buddi's relationship and of her clan in general. She suspected he hated her guts though she could not pinpoint why, other than her non-Barbic heritage. In any event, his protest didn't surprise her though his harsh words were still hurtful.

Nonsense! You have no idea what you ask, girl! Absolutely not! We're tainted enough of our clan by allowing you to come leeching around so often! You dare—"

"Ryo, sit down and shut up!" Buddi had leapt to his feet and pointed a finger at the Barbic, threatening. "She wasn't just talkin' to you. Your opinion, as stupid and racist as it is, is noted."

"Take care how you speak to your elders, boy!" Ryo turned, growling through his teeth at the younger bear, his claws unconsciously coming out. He was angry and in typical Ryo fashion, he made no move to hide it. Far as he was concerned, Buddi was the one most damaged by this Glen girl and he meant to put a stop to it, here and now.

"ACT like you're older than me and I will." Buddi's ears flattened against his head, something Sunni had never seen before. She had seen him angry before or so she thought but never to this extent. He growled right back at Ryo, something she had never seen him do before.

"You insolent—"

Ursa leapt to her feet, moving around the table faster than Sunni thought possible. She grasped Buddi by the shoulder and pushed herself in between the two. To Buddi, she stated, "Sit down, hold your tongue."

Then to Ryo, "YOU sit down and shut up."

Sunni couldn't help a small smirk at the fact that Ursa deliberately used the crude version with Ryo and the more polite version with Buddi. The Barbic leader turned back to her, stating simply, "The girl has a right to speak and request. Do me a favor and don't embarrass us by acting like children." While she didn't direct that statement to anyone per say, it was pretty much unspoken that it was directed at Ryo.

Ryo snarled at Ursa, fully intent on protesting until she hit him with a glare that Sunni had never seen from her as well as a phrase Sunni had never heard before. Buddi would tell her later that it was essentially asking if Ryo meant to challenge her authority and if so, he best back up his words.

Ryo went silent though he still glowered at Sunni, making the poor girl nervous so instead she shifted her eyes back to Ursa. While Sunni could see a bit of irritation in Ursa's eyes that told her the Barbic Leader was hardly pleased with this development, at least she was listening.

"Are you aware of the weight of what you're asking, Sunni?" Her tone was rough but no rougher than her usual tone. There wasn't anything condescending about it. It seemed that Sunni's hunch that she had started to earn the Barbic Leader's respect appeared to be accurate somewhat.

Taking a deep breath, Sunni replied, "Yes. Buddi and I have talked about it. It's the test he has to take to be recognized as an adult but it has another reason." She locked eyes with the Barbic leader. "It allows a non-Barbic to surrender their last heritage and to take on the Barbic name. Buddi called it a 'transforming of blood?"

Ursa nodded, leaning against the table, facing the girl. "An appropriate term. It is called a transformation because that is what it is. The mind and body are transformed and thus, spiritually, so is the soul. It is a lengthy process, girl. Painful. Hard. And irreversible." On this, Ursa folded her arms and seemed centuries older. "Once you take this step, there is no turning back. There is no quitting. There is no "I changed my mind," It is permanent on every level and every meaning of the word."

Sunni nodded, "I know. I didn't decide this overnight, Ursa." She took a shaky breath, "I've been thinking about it seriously for the past year. I think I was even thinking about it before then, I just didn't have a word for it." It was funny but now, things seemed easier. The language seemed easier and as she explained, from the depth of her heart, it seemed…okay.

Ursa frowned, "I'm glad to hear that at least but you must answer me 'why,' Sunni."

Taking another breath, she stated, "I would be lying if I told you that Buddi was not the starting point." She shifted her eyes to her boyfriend, drawing strength from those gentle eyes. "I love him Ursa, but I think you've known that for a while. You're not blind."

A simple nod, with pinched lips but Ursa did not say anything so Sunni continued.

"I want…I want to make a life with him one day. I want to stand by his side, support him, give him my strength…" She tried her hardest to ignore Ryo's snickers and was relieved when Grubbi reached over and slapped him upside the head. "I want to give him children one day. But mostly, I just want…to be with him."

Taking another breath, Sunni jumped into her next explanation before Ursa could respond.

"And I know that right now, I can't do that. I want to, I desire to. But I don't know how. Buddi's stronger than me, I know that. Not just physically. Buddi's Barbic and it's clear in everything he does." Oh, she got a smile out of Ursa at that one. "I couldn't ask him to surrender that, I would never think it. So instead, I have to grow to meet him in strength. I have to become stronger. I think I've always known that my life would never be in the Glen, Ursa. I don't mean them any disrespect. I truly don't. I have learned a lot from them. But my place is NOT there." Swallowing hard, "I don't think it has been for a long time. I'm just asking, let me make my place here."

Ursa let out a feathery sigh and rubbed her temples. "Love can be a strong motivator-"

"I said Buddi was the starting point and he is but he isn't the only reason!" Sunni jumped in. The Barbic leader, despite being interrupted, eyed her but let her continue. "I've learned so much here, Ursa. Things I never thought I'd be able to do! I love that feeling. I want to grow in that! I..I don't know how I would help the clan as an adult but I want to be there, I want to be directly involved. I don't want to hide. I want to be on the front lines, making sure no one I care about is going to be hurt by ANYONE. And I do care about you all, Ursa. All of you." Sunni swallowed, pulling air into her lungs after her outburst.

Ursa tilted her head, "Noble reasons…" As much as she was initially against this, hearing the passion in the girl's voice, the reasoning she had, it was clear this was not just the ramblings of a love-struck teen. Ursa had to respect that.

"Ursa!" Ryo leapt up. "You are not seriously considering this?!"

"It is allowable by our own rules, you know that. You know as well as I that we did not grow to our size from the small group of six without taking in outsiders. Outsiders that had to prove themselves, same as she will have to."

"A Glen…a Glen in our ranks?!" Ryo looked like he was ready to erupt like a volcano.

Ursa locked eyes with him, "If she passes our tests, she will no longer be 'Glen.' Is that so hard for your brain to comprehend?"

"If you let such weakness in…" He began, standing up again.

"What do you think I'm asking you all to do?!" Sunni cut in, addressing Ryo directly for the first time. He was an intimidating fellow, as most Barbics were. Tall but not as tall as Ursa, dark eyes that seemed in a permanent scowl. But now, with what felt like a chance, the girl was NOT going to be bullied about any longer! "I _know_ I don't fit in with you, NOW. I'm asking to undergo this to MAKE me strong. To make me an EQUAL! To TEACH me! To help me BECOME strong!"

Ryo snarled at her, "You think it's that simple, Glen?"

Sunni narrowed her eyes right back, "Is it really so complicated for you? My heart knows what it wants. My body isn't ready. My mind isn't ready. I'm asking to help me MAKE it ready!"

Ryo scoffed, "So we waste time trying to teach you what we live only for you to run home to-"

"I already told them that I'm not coming home." Sunni declared, earning a look from every Barbic in the room, including Buddi. "I told them all before I left this time. Why do you think I only have things that Buddi's given me?"

Ursa cleared her throat, "And what made you so confident I would agree to it?"

Sunni put her hands to her hips and faced off with the Barbic leader, "Because I'm not taking no for an answer Ursa." She swallowed and narrowed her eyes. "If you say no, I'll just keep coming around, teaching myself what I can and just reasking, reasking and reasking until you break."

Ursa raised a brow, obviously impressed. "You already burned your last bridge?" She had heard what the girl said but honestly, she was having a hard time believing it. To take such a permanent change, already, without any assurance..

"Yes. Gruffi was…not happy. But it isn't his life I'm living, it's mine. I…think he'll come around, eventually. He'll understand one day." Truthfully, she prayed for that. His disappointment, his sadness had been the hardest thing in the world to swallow. He was hard on her and he probably understood her the least of the group but…he was still dear to her heart.

But she would wait on him.

Ursa frowned, thinking. So far, she could see no reasoning not to grant the girl's request but she had one more question to ask, something that would answer it for all time for her.

"Sunni, you will have to pick a mentor to teach you our ways, train you, show you what it means to carry Barbic blood. If I were to give you a choice, who would you pick?"

Now THAT caught her off guard. The girl blinked, but then swiftly gave a smile. The question was unexpected but the answer was clear.

"You, Ursa."

Now it was Ursa's turn to be stunned. "Me?"

Sunni nodded firmly. "Because you're hard. Because you won't feel pity for me because I'm 'Glen.' Because you won't allow me to be anything but the strongest I can become." She stepped forward to the Barbic Leader and extended her hand to her, "And what better person to ensure I will be strong enough to stand by Buddi's side than his Mama?"

Ursa did smile now and grasped the girl's hand, hard. "Sunrise. Training Field. You and Me."

"I look forward to it."


End file.
